by Amy Cross
I watch as he pulls some matches and a set of small white cubes from his backpack, and to my surprise he quickly gets a fire going. Immediately kneeling next to the flames and starting to get warm, I look over at Toad and see that he's still working to strip the branches I brought in from the rain. I can't help thinking that if he wasn't with me, I'd have had no idea how to get a fire started; then again, without him, I probably wouldn't have been out here in the first place.
"Oreo?" he says suddenly, reaching into his backpack and pulling out a packet of cookies.
"Seriously?" I reply, stunned that a guy like Toad would carry a packet of Oreos into the wilderness.
"Help yourself," he says with a smile. "I think the storm has settled in for the day, so we might be stuck here for a few hours. If you don't like Oreos, I can always try to cook the rabbit, but to be honest, I'm hoping things don't get that desperate. It can taste kinda bland without herbs."
As I eat a cookie, I try to stop shivering, but the fire isn't managing to dry my clothes fast enough.
"Take them off," Toad says suddenly, grabbing two of the longer branches and propping them over the fire. "Lay your clothes out on there and they should be dry in an hour or so." Still cutting away at the wood, he smiles as he turns his back to me. "Don't worry," he continues, "I won't look. You can trust me. I'm worried you'll get sick."
"I'm not taking my clothes off!" I say firmly.
"I won't look," he says again. "You're going to get ill if you just sit there like that."
I stare at the back of his head, and finally I start slipping out of my wet clothes. I'm convinced that he's going to 'accidentally' turn around at any moment, but all I can think about is that I desperately need to get dry. Once I'm naked, I sit as close as possible to the fire, and the warmth feels good on my bare skin. At first, I try to crouch into a ball, to keep myself covered up in case he breaks his word and turns around, but eventually I become a little less defensive and I start to sit normally.
"How old are you, anyway?" Toad asks, still with his back to me.
"Twenty-one," I reply.
"Huh," he says, still working on the branches.
"How old are you?" I ask eventually.
"A couple of years older," he replies. "Twenty-eight, to be specific." Without turning to look at me, he reaches back and tosses some more pieces of wood onto the fire, which seems to be burning pretty well. "How's it looking?"
"It's still burning," I tell him.
He doesn't reply. Instead, he continues to cut pieces of wet bark off the rest of the wood I brought from outside.
"It's okay," I say, placing an arm over my chest. "I can cover myself up. You don't have to keep your back to me like that."
"It's not a problem," he replies, still not looking.
"Aren't you wet too?" I ask.
"I'm used to it," he says. "You're not. Besides, I'm wearing waterproofs under my clothes. I'm mostly dry."
I sit in silence for a moment, listening to the sound of the rain. Every few minutes, there's a flash of lightning, accompanied by a rumble of thunder, and right now it's hard to believe that this bad weather is ever going to end. The storm is almost biblical in its intensity, and although I guess there's no reason to be scared, I can't help thinking that this much rain could surely cause some real damage.
"Do you think the world's going to end?" I ask.
"Do you think it hasn't already?" he replies.
I pause.
"It's just different," he continues after a moment. "Very different. It's not as easy to survive, but there's no reason why we can't keep going. I don't know why a random bunch of us made it out of whatever happened, but once things have settled down I think we should be able to restore a little order. I doubt it'll ever go back to how things were, though, and I can't say I'm particularly sorry about that. The modern world was getting too dangerous."
"I want it to go back exactly to how it was," I reply. "I want this whole mess to be temporary."
"Here," Toad says after a moment, reaching into his backpack and passing some kind of cloth bundle to me. "I forgot I had this. It's waterproof. At least it'll keep you covered up until your clothes are dry."
Unfolding the bundle, I find that it's a kind of dark blue raincoat. It takes me a moment to get it on, but finally I'm comfortable, albeit a little cold. At least, however, I'm totally dry. "It's okay," I say. "You can look now."
"You sure?"
"I'm sure," I reply with a smile, finding it kind of cute to see how carefully he's making sure he doesn't see me naked.
He glances over at me.
"See?" I say with a faint smile. "Nothing to be embarrassed about."
"I'm sorry I brought you out here," he replies. "I knew there was rain coming, but I thought it'd take longer to arrive and I had no idea it was going to be so bad. If I'd known, I'd have made you stay behind at the farm. I don't know what's wrong with me. I never make stupid mistakes like this. In all the time I've been out here, I've never let a storm creep up on me."
"It doesn't matter," I point out.
"Of course it matters," he says, seemingly a little annoyed. "Mistakes like this can be fatal. One wrong move, and we could both end up dead. I put us in a huge amount of unnecessary danger." He pauses. "I was careless. I normally double-check these things and make sure I don't take stupid risks. I guess I was just focused on other things today, but I can't let anything like this happen again. This level of rain could cause mud-slides, floods... I can't remember the last time I got things so badly wrong.
"Don't worry about it," I say, finally feeling warm for the first time since we got out of the rain. I reach up and check my clothes, but they're still soaking wet. "It's not your fault that the weather's so bad." I pause for a moment. "So do you mind if I ask you a question? It's kind of personal."
"Is there any way I can stop you?" he replies with a half-smile.
"It's just... Why do people call you Toad?"
He laughs. "It was so long ago," he says. "I was just a kid, and -"
Before he can finish, we're both stunned by the sound of a long, agonized scream, coming from somewhere out in the rain-lashed forest. Lasting for several seconds, the scream is followed by cries of pain and anger.
"What the hell's that?" I ask.
Hurrying to the entrance, Toad stares out into the rain. Whoever's out there, they're still screaming, as if the pain is getting worse.
"Who else is in these woods?" I ask.
"No-one," Toad says, turning back to face me with fear in his eyes. "There's not supposed to be anyone for miles."
"Someone's out there," I say, joining him at the entrance and staring out at the storm-lashed forest. The screams are continuing. In fact, if anything, they're getting worse. Someone's out there, close by, and they're in agony.
Thomas
Missouri
Slamming my shoulder into the door with as much force as I can manage, I feel a sharp pain bursting through my body. I quickly drop to the floor, and it's clear that the door is undamaged.
Slowly, I get to my feet. My shoulder feels damaged, but I have to keep trying. I can't stay down here. Even if I have to smash my entire body apart, I'm going to find a way to break through that goddamn door.
"Please," I whisper, "you have to help me. Just give me the strength to do this."
For a moment, I feel as if all my energy is ebbing away. I stare at the metal door and realize that there's no way I can ever force it down.
"Please," I whisper again.
Limping over to the far end of the basement, I turn and stare at the door. Maybe this time I can break it down; maybe this time, God is going to help me. Taking a deep breath, I try to summon every ounce of energy that I've got left, and finally I run screaming across the room, once again throwing myself against the door. All that happens, however, is that I feel my entire body shake, and I drop to the floor in an agonized heap. Finally, I let out a cry of frustration.
I wait.
; Right now, I feel as if I can't ever get to my feet. It's over. I'm done.
Eventually, however, I decide that I have to try again. If I'm going to die, it might as well happen while I'm still fighting. Despite the pain in my shoulder and arm, I haul myself to my feet and stagger painfully back over to the far side of the basement. I glance down at the spot where the dead girl's body is covered by sacks, and then I turn to once again face the door.
"Please," I say under my breath, "help me. Just give me the strength I need to get this door open."
I take a deep breath.
"Please."
With that, I run toward the door. I feel as if this time, maybe, I'm going a little faster before. Is it possible that this is going to be my lucky moment? As I slam at full speed into the door, however, I realize that it hasn't worked. Time seems to stand still as my crumpled, fractured body drops to the floor, landing in a heap. It's over. I can't do it again. I'm going to be stuck down here forever.
Elizabeth
Pennsylvania
"Stay in the cave!" Toad shouts as he hurries through the rain.
"No way!" I shout back at him as I struggle to keep up. The rain is making it hard to walk, but at least I've got the waterproof coat to keep me somewhat dry. I feel as if I have to stay with Toad, because whatever's happening out here, he might need my help. I've only known the guy for twenty-four hours, but I figure we make a pretty good team, and there's no way I'm letting him run out alone toward a distant scream. I don't know how to survive out here, and I don't know how to get back to the farm, so if Toad dies, I'll be dead too.
"Have you got your gun?" he asks.
"Of course!" I shout, relieved that just as we were leaving the cave I remembered to grab the gun that he gave me earlier.
We make our way between the trees, and although there's still lightning flashing in the sky, it seems as if the storm is no longer directly above us. Still, the rain is lashing down and the sound of the screams is barely audible. We're definitely getting closer, though, and it sounds as if we're only a few meters away from whatever is making that terrible noise. With the sound of the rain all around, however, it's almost impossible to know for sure exactly what's causing the screams, but it definitely seems to be human. It's as if someone somewhere is in great pain, calling out for help and trying desperately to survive. The scream is almost primal.
"Careful!" Toad shouts, grabbing my arm. "I left some traps around here!"
"Maybe someone fell into one," I reply.
"There's not supposed to be anyone out here!" he shouts. "This is private property! There are signs! No-one's allowed on my land!"
"Maybe signs worked before," I point out, "but things have changed."
"We're miles from the nearest town," he continues. "There can't be anyone here! People know better than to come onto my land!"
"Over there!" I shout, spotting a bare patch where the forest floor seems to have collapsed, leaving a small pit. It looks like one of Toad's traps, and while it's not very big, I guess a human could fall down out of sight if he was unlucky. In that case, the spikes at the bottom of the pit are almost certainly the reason for such agonized screams. I don't care what Toad says: someone has come out here and ended up in one of his traps.
"Stay behind me," Toad says, taking his gun from its holster. "Let me handle this. Whatever's happening out here, you need to let me take the lead? Do you understand?"
I nod.
"Do you promise, Elizabeth?" he continues. "If you make one wrong move, you could put us both in danger. I need to know that I can trust you, and that you'll do what I say."
"I promise," I say.
With his gun still drawn, Toad starts to approach the pit. Thanks to all the rain that has come down over the past few hours, the ground is extremely slippery, so we both move carefully until finally we're able to look down into the pit and see that there's a figure down there, partially impaled on one of the wooden spikes that Toad has been using to catch animals. The figure's struggling, trying desperately to get free, but the spike is passing straight through his torso.
"What is it?" I ask, stunned by the sight of the struggling, screaming figure.
"It's one of them," Toad replies.
As I look closer, I realize that he's right. It's one of the creatures that I saw back in New York, and although its body is showing signs of decomposition, it seems to be holding together a little better than the creature that Henry and I met in the car. After struggling for a moment, the creature turns and looks up at us. His face is a kind of yellow-blue color, and one of his eyes is missing, but there's a smile on his lips and it's clear that he's capable of recognizing that he's being watched.
"Clever!" the creature shouts. "What can I say? I was careless, and you got me!"
"It's like he's partially decomposing," Toad says, shocked by what he's seeing. "I've only seen them properly from a distance before. I always destroy them before they can get anywhere near me."
"I've seen one close up," I reply. "It looked the same."
"Aren't you going to help?" the creature shouts. "I'm still learning to ignore the pain from each individual body that I'm controlling. It's not easy."
"Ask him what's happening," I whisper.
"Quiet!" he hisses.
"There are more of me," the creature continues. "You know that, don't you? I can't even begin to tell you how many bodies I can control right now. Billions. It's not easy, learning how to make them all do what I want, dividing my mind into so many different perspectives, but I'm slowly making improvements." He stares directly at me. "I recognize you," he says after a moment. "Manhattan. I saw you. You and some kid shot me. That was at the start, but I'm much better now." As if to prove his point, he starts easing his rotten body off the spike. "There aren't many survivors left," he continues, grimacing as he continues with his attempt to get free. Slowly, he starts sliding the wood out from his chest.
"Shoot him!" I shout at Toad.
"You can't shoot all of us," the creature says. "There aren't enough bullets in the world. Shoot me, and I'll be back sooner rather than later. I know where you are, and I'm already making my way toward this place in other bodies. Why bother fighting? There's no way you can get away from me. I'm everywhere, like God."
"Shoot him!" I say again, desperate to make sure that there's no way this creature can get to us.
"I want to know what he wants," Toad replies.
"I'll do it," I say, pulling the gun from my pocket.
"No!" Toad says firmly, grabbing my arm. "I told you to let me take the lead!"
"You have to kill this thing!" I reply.
"I will," he says, "but I want to learn why it's here first."
"Don't you want to know where this all came from?" the creature asks, still sliding off the spike, which has made a large hole in his chest. "Don't you want to know how I could be in all these bodies at once? One mind, controlling so many physical forms. It's a work of genius, really. I haven't managed to really explain it to anyone yet, and I'd like to hear someone else's view of my brilliance before I finish off the last of the survivors. Would the pair of you be willing to act as my audience? It's such a tragedy to pull off such a wonderful scheme without having anyone to see what I'm doing. It never occurred to me that I'd want an audience. I guess I'm a little more proud than I'd like to admit."
"What are you waiting for?" I ask, turning to Toad. "Kill it!"
"So much blood-lust in such a pretty young woman," the creature says with a smile. "I like it. You're a lot better than the ones who just scream."
"I want to know everything," Toad says, with his gun still aimed at the creature. "I want to know what caused all this."
"Of course you want to know," the creature replies. "You want to convince yourself that there's still a chance you might stop it. Do you really see yourselves as heroes? Billions of people around the planet are infected with a virus that, as far as I know, can't possibly be defeated. It's only a matter of time before the
rest of you pathetic creatures can be picked off, and then this planet will have reached its evolutionary zenith. Billions of organisms, all of them with one unified soul. Isn't that better than having loads of pesky individuals, butting heads with one another? At least this way, we can cooperate. Everyone will be the same. Once I've picked off the last few survivors, anyway."
"What are you?" Toad asks, keeping his gun aimed down into the pit.
"How about you help me up from here?" the creature replies. "I'll be happy to explain everything before I kill you. You'll be the lucky ones. You'll get to know what's happening before you die. Then again, maybe that makes you the unlucky ones instead."
"You're not making any sense," Toad replies. "How about you tell us, nice and simply, what the hell you are. Stop talking in riddles, stop dancing around the subject, and just tell us the truth."
"As far as I can tell," the creature continues, "this body used to be a mountain ranger of some kind. Definitely something linked to law enforcement. He died in a cabin, a few miles away, just on the edge of your property. He was a very fit young man, which is useful, but he had another use. Would you care to guess what it is? Do you have any idea why I was so pleased to get control of this particular body?"
"No-one's doing any guessing," Toad says firmly.
"Fine," the creature continues. "I'll show you." With that, he switches his position a little, and I realize that he's got a gun in his left hand; before I can react, a shot rings out.
Instinctively ducking out of the way, I land hard on the forest floor. As Toad lands next to me, I turn and see that there's a huge red wound in his left shoulder, and his eyes look empty and glassy. For a fraction of a second, I'm convinced that he's dead, but then he lets out a gasp and a pained groan, and I realize that there's still just about some hope.
